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University student makes Rio Paralympic team

11/02/2016

University student makes Rio Paralympic team

A University of Wolverhampton student has been named as part of the ParalympicsGB judo team for Rio 2016.

Jack Hodgson has been named as part of the British Judoka that will compete at the games in Brazil in September.

Jack (19), from Gainsborough, is a first year BSc Sports Coaching student based at the University’s Walsall Campus, where he is also part of the British Judo Centre of Excellence.

He suffers from a rare-genetic disorder called Ushers Syndrome, which has resulted in him being profoundly deaf and having a degenerative eye condition.

Jack Hodgson Judo Player gets picked for the Paralympics Rio 2016

He said: “I’m incredibly proud to be selected to ParalympicsGB for Rio 2016 and I’d like to thank everyone for their incredible support up to this point.

“It’s what I’ve been working towards and my ambition is to win a medal. I’d love to win gold but will be looking for a placing in the top five at the very least.

“My Mum and Dad are really proud and very happy and just very excited to see me compete at the games.

“I went to the Paralympics in London in 2012 and got to visit the athletes' village and went to see several sports and it was amazing. Paralympic sport really went through the roof after that as people realised that everyone competing were athletes in their own right.”

Jack, who competes in the plus 100kg category, has already won a number of medals in top competitions this year, most recently taking bronze at the European Championships in Portugal.

He is also part of the University of Wolverhampton Sports Scholar programme, which financially supports outstanding athletes to continue competing during their studies.

The University of Wolverhampton’s Walsall Campus is home to the British Judo Centre of Excellence, home of the GB World-Class Performance Programme.

ENDS

For more information please contact James Allen in the Media Relations Office on 01902 322003.

Date Issued: Thursday 11 February 2016

For more information please contact the Corporate Communications Team.

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